Well goodbye L-22s and hello Transients! I'm very excited for this new change of pace the last couple of days, but still sad to see our last Resident Orcas go back out the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We had the small group of eight transient Orcas come in yesterday and kill a Minke Whale and they were still around to watch today! I've never seen this group of nomads before and was just as excited as everyone on board to get some good views in!

Transient Orcas differ from our Resident...

AMAZING views of transient orcas today! Captain Mike, myself, and the passengers aboard our sunset tour were rewarded with a multitude of spectacular sightings right outside Friday Harbor. It didn't take us long to meet up with the same transients we left during our 1:30 trip since they had moved further north in our absence.

With the sun setting at our backs, we were able to coast alongside the transients as they went about their foraging behavior. Transient orcas are marine mammal...

Our guests have been lucking out lately!  Bigg’s Killer Whales, with their erratic diving behavior and extended dives, can be a challenge to view at times.  However, observers who are lucky enough to see orcas locate prey and witness the gritty details of a kill easily get their fill of whale watching.  Often, killer whales with their prey can be analogous to a cat and mouse.  The process can be drawn out and grisly.  I get exhausted just watching them!

Today the Transients were...

The same group of marine mammal-eating Transients (the T49Bs and T65As) that "wowed" us yesterday demonstrated their hunting prowess again today outside of Sidney, British Columbia. Just before coming upon the gang we witnessed several Harbor Porpoise in the area. The orcas began to breach and moved inshore where it appeared that they pinned their prey right up against the beach. Our hardy guests enjoyed the show despite the driving wind and rain and huddled back in our vessel's...

We left the dock again today with very little information about wildlife sightings and a fresh crew full of expectations for the day. Should we go north or south from Friday Harbor in search of wildlife? It's a question that we sweat over in the business. The Salish Sea is a big place, with animals that roam as they please, and our range limited to just a 3-4 hour time frame.

We decided to go south, as we had rumors of orcas spotted off Victoria earlier in the morning. We also had...

Today we observed another pair of Transient Orcas in the Straight of Juan de Fuca, off Victoria. Spotting two giant, black triangles from quite a distance, we confirmed that we were dealing with two mature bulls. When male orcas come into puberty in their early teens, they are known as “sprouters,” as their dorsal fin begins growing dramatically from about 3 feet to 5, even 6 feet! At first they exhibited the typical erratic diving behavior of hunting Transients, and then settled in...

We last spotted T20 and T21 on Friday near Active Pass, north of Mayne Island, British Columbia. Today we found the Transient pair enjoying the Victorian Waterfront.  Initially the Orcas appeared to be in resting mode, making slow northerly progress. Then they turned the opposite direction, heading toward the majestic, snow-capped Olympic mountains and the wide-open Strait of Juan de Fuca. The sea state was calm today, with sweeping views in all directions, signaling the beginning of...

At this time of year, it’s not unusual to leave the dock without a whale sighting to direct our course. The relatively predictable Southern Resident Killer Whales may not return to their summer feeding grounds in the Salish Sea for quite some time yet. Fortunately, the San Juan Islands harbor an abundance of life year-round, especially during the spring.

Today we passed by Yellow Island and saw sprays of color from spring wildflowers. Speiden Island is also looking oddly verdant. It...